REQUEST TO COLLEGE CURRICULUM COMMITTEE FOR CURRICULAR IMPROVEMENTS DEPARTMENT: MGMT PROPOSED EFFECTIVE SEMESTER: Fall 2014 COLLEGE: Business PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS Academic Program Substantive Course Changes Misc. Course Changes New degree* New course Title New major* Pre or Co-requisites Description (attach current & proposed) New curriculum* Deletion (required by others) Deletion (not required by others) New concentration* Course #, different level Course #, same level New certificate Credit hours Variable credit New minor Enrollment restriction Credit/no credit Revised major Course-level restriction Cross-listing Revised minor Prefix Title and description COGE reapproval Admission requirements (attach current & proposed) Other (explain**) Graduation requirements General education (select one) Deletion Transfer Not Applicable Other (explain**) Other (explain**) ** Other: Title of degree, curriculum, major, minor, concentration, or certificate: Existing course prefix and #: Proposed course prefix and #: MGMT 3340 Credit hours: 3 Existing course title: Proposed course title: Business Model Design Existing course prerequisite & co-requisite(s): Proposed course prerequisite(s) MGMT 2140 or MGMT 2500, FIN 2420 or FIN 3200. Proposed course co-requisite(s) None Proposed course prerequisite(s) that can also be taken concurrently: Not Applicable Is there a minimum grade for the prerequisites or corequisites? Not Applicable Major/minor or classification restrictions: None For 5000 level prerequisites & corequisites: Do these apply to: (circle one) undergraduates graduates both Specifications for University Schedule of Classes: a. Course title (maximum of 30 spaces): Business Model Design b. Multi-topic course: No Yes c. Repeatable for credit: No Yes d. Mandatory credit/no credit: No Yes e. Type of class and contact hours per week (check type and indicate hours as appropriate) 1. Lecture 3. Lecture/lab/discussion.3 hrs. 5. Independent study 2. Lab or discussion 4. Seminar or studio 6. Supervision or practicum CIP Code (Registrar s use only): Chair/Director Chair, College Curriculum Committee Date Date Dean Date: Graduate Dean: Date Curriculum Manager: Return to dean Date Forward to: Date Chair, COGE/ PEB / FS President FOR PROPOSALS REQUIRING GSC/USC REVIEW: Date * Approve Disapprove Chair, GSC/USC Date * Approve Disapprove Provost Date Revised May 2007. All previous forms are obsolete and should not be used.
1. Explain briefly and clearly the proposed improvement. This new course provides a tested methodology for university students who are interested in developing, testing and validating business models and value propositions to start new businesses or increase innovation in an existing business. This course will be part of the new major in entrepreneurship. 2. Rationale. Give your reason(s) for the proposed improvement. (If your proposal includes prerequisites, justify those, too.) Western Michigan University is not currently offering classes in Business Model Design and validation, which puts WMU at a competitive disadvantage in business education. The purpose of this course is to provide students with the framework to design, test, and validate business models from the corporate, family business and non-profit world in addition to the primary focus on entrepreneurship. This course will be an integral component of the new major in entrepreneurship. 3. Effect on other colleges, departments or programs. If consultation with others is required, attach evidence of consultation and support. If objections have been raised, document the resolution. Demonstrate that the program you propose is not a duplication of an existing one. This change will not impact other colleges, departments or programs. 4. Effect on your department s programs. Show how the proposed change fits with other departmental offerings. This proposed course will have a positive impact in relationship to the renewed focus on entrepreneurship within the management department and the recent addition of dedicated faculty in the area of entrepreneurship. The material explored in this class has also been validated by the usage of companies in diverse areas, including family businesses and Fortune 500 companies, as well as in the social entrepreneur context (e.g. World Vision). 5. Effects on enrolled students: Are program conflicts avoided? Will your proposal make it easier or harder for students to meet graduation requirements? Can students complete the program in a reasonable time? Show that you have considered scheduling needs and demands on students time. If a required course will be offered during summer only, provide a rationale. This course will have no effect and is synergistic to many disciplines. 6. Student or external market demand. What is your anticipated student audience? What evidence of student or market demand or need exists? What is the estimated enrollment? What other factors make your proposal beneficial to students? There is currently an increasing demand for entrepreneurship course offerings which can compete with the higher-level courses offered at other Universities. Currently WMU is behind in its offerings in this area compared to other universities in the Midwestern United States and nationally. Similar designed classes have had significant demand and positive impacts based on research from the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance. The methodology taught in this class is becoming required for many NSF grant opportunities. Based on the capped enrollment in the currently offered special topics class with same curriculum, estimated enrollment would be 40 per fall and spring terms (one section per semester). 7. Effects on resources. Explain how your proposal would affect department and University resources, including faculty, equipment, space, technology, and library holdings. Tell how you will staff additions to the program. If more advising will be needed, how will you provide for it? How often will course(s) be offered? What will be the initial one-time costs and the ongoing base-funding costs for the proposed program? (Attach additional pages, as necessary.) In the last two years the Department of Management has added additional faculty dedicated to the research and teaching of entrepreneurship. This course is currently being taught as a Special Topics course. There will be no additional initial start-up cost or on-going base funding required.
8. General education criteria. For a general education course, indicate how this course will meet the criteria for the area or proficiency. (See the General Education Policy for descriptions of each area and proficiency and the criteria. Attach additional pages as necessary. Attach a syllabus if (a) proposing a new course, (b) requesting certification for baccalaureate-level writing, or (c) requesting preapproval of an existing course.) Not applicable. 9. List the learning outcomes for the proposed course or the revised or proposed major, minor, or concentration. These are the outcomes that the department will use for future assessments of the course or program. This course will address learning objectives #3 for the entrepreneurship major. Because of this course, graduates with an Entrepreneurship Major will have the knowledge, skills and abilities to construct business models and plans to fully understand the primary drivers of a startup as well as an established business. 10. Describe how this curriculum change is a response to assessment outcomes that are part of a departmental or college assessment plan or informal assessment activities. The entrepreneurship major has been proposed as a result of the change in the business environment, which has lead to an increasing focus on entrepreneurship. This is evident in the focus by the United States government on entrepreneurship to revive the economy and increase the number of meaningful jobs. In addition, this is evident in the demand by students for entrepreneurship courses at universities around the country and universities adjusting to demand by adding entrepreneurship courses and full programs that include degrees (majors, minors, and certificate programs). This course change is in support of the entrepreneurship major. The class has been designed around the validated research conducted, and entrepreneurial teaching methodology recommended by the National Science Foundation (NSF-I-Corp) and the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance (NCIIA). Western Michigan University is a member of the NCIIA. 11. (Undergraduate proposals only) Describe, in detail, how this curriculum change affects transfer articulation for Michigan community colleges. For course changes, include detail on necessary changes to transfer articulation from Michigan community college courses. For new majors or minors, describe transfer guidelines to be developed with Michigan community colleges. For revisions to majors or minors, describe necessary revisions to Michigan community college guidelines. Department chairs should seek assistance from college advising directors or from the admissions office in completing this section. No Change.
Proposed Catalog Copy MGMT 3340 Business Model Design This course provides a tested methodology for university students who are interested in developing, testing and validating business models and value propositions to start new businesses or increase innovation in existing businesses. Students will get hands-on experience talking to customers, partners, and competitors as they encounter chaos and uncertainty in starting a new business and when changing an existing business. Prerequisites & Corequisites: Prerequisites: MGMT 2140, MGMT 2500, MKTG 2500 and FCL 3200. Credits: 3 hours
Business Model Design- MGMT 3340 Western Michigan University Fall 2014 Course Description: The Business Model Design class is based on using the Business Model Canvas, Value Proposition Canvas, Lean Canvas and Empathy Mapping to collapse the infinite possibilities of a startup into a solvable problem. This class uses experiential learning as the paradigm for engaging the participants in discovery and hypotheses testing of their business models. From the first day we meet, the teams get out of the classroom and learn by doing. This is very different from how a business school how to write a business plan class works. There, a valid business model is assumed. In this class, the teams are not building a business (yet). What they learn from customers will validate/invalidate their hypotheses (theses), and they will modify the business model (iterate or pivot). This results in the teams bringing market needs forward. Then they can decide whether there s a validated business model (testable and measurable). The final outcome will be using class concepts to prove their final business models by either: ü Develop seed stage products/services and enter student Business Model and Venture Contests like the Michigan Clean Energy Venture Contest and/or events similar to SeedCon at the University of Chicago. ü Develop seed stage products/service or existing product innovations and present to actual accredited investors and/or other competitive student contests. While we will present, this is not a Pitch Class. In the words of Alex Osterwalder. pitching without validation is cognitive murder. This is also not a Business Plan class! In the words of Steve Blank, No business plan survives the first customer contact. Definition: A startup is a temporary organization designed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model. This emphasis on search for a validated business model versus execution of a plan is the heart of the Business Model Design curriculum. Learning Methodology The search for a repeatable business model for a new product or service does not follow a predictable pattern. An entrepreneur must start with the belief that all her assumptions are simply hypotheses that will undoubtedly be challenged by what she learns from customers. Analyzing a case in the classroom, removed from the realities of chaos and conflicting customer responses, adds little to an entrepreneur s knowledge. Cases can t be replicated because the world of a startup is too Chaotic and complicated. The case method is the antithesis of how entrepreneurs build startups it teaches pattern recognition tools for the wrong patterns and therefore has limited value as a tool for teaching entrepreneurship. Revised May 2007. All previous forms are obsolete and should not be used.
Business Model Design is a hands- on Class that immerses student teams in testing their business model hypotheses outside the classroom. Inside the classroom, it deliberately trades lecture time for student/teaching- team interaction. We will also use a web based tool developed by Alex Osterwalder called Strategyzer that will allow students, team members and the instructor to collaborate 24/7 on aspects of the class. Each student group will have their own Collaborative Canvas and Value Proposition Canvas located on this powerful software. Key outcomes Knowledge and Comprehensive understanding and/or usage of: Ø Business Models versus Business Plans (this is not a business plan class) Ø Business Model Generation and Canvas (Osterwalder & Pigneur) Ø The Lean Canvas (Ash Maurya) o Value Proposition Canvas in in relation to Business Model Canvas o Pain Killers Gain Creators Ø The Empathy Map in relationship to Business Model Canvas Ø Product/market fit analysis Ø Key Concepts of Lean Startups (Ries, Moore, and Blank) Ø Key concepts of Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and Build- Measure- Learn Testing Ø Business Model Cost Structures and Revenue Models Ø Understand how the additional layer of Sustainable Business Practices fits with Business Model Design The final outcome will be using these concepts to prove their final business models by either: ü Develop seed stage products/services and enter student Business Model and Venture Contests like the Michigan Clean Energy Venture Contest and/or events similar to SeedCon at the University of Chicago. We compete against the best! ü Develop seed stage products/service or existing product innovations and present to actual accredited investors and/or other competitive student contests. Required Text Book and Blogs Business Model Generation, by Osterwalder & Pigneur, Published by Wiley The Start- up Owner s Manual, by Blank and Dorf, Published by K&S The Lean Startup, by Ries, Published by Crown Running Lean, by Maurya, Published by O Reilly The following are required weekly viewing (always be prepared to discuss a post you found interesting) Ø http://techcrunch.com/ Ø http://steveblank.com/ Supplementary Reading: The instructor will provide significant required articles (electronic and paper formats) to update and fill in on focus areas. Technology Requirements: Please bring your IPhone, smart phones, IPad and tablets to class! Also you and or your group will need to have access to a Video Camera, Web Cam enabled IPhone, IPad, Mac or PC and appropriate software. Students will use video in several key assignments. WMU has this equipment in various computer labs. It is assumed you are skilled in social media. Deliverables: Quizzes - three
Essay and short answer which will be based on Business Model Design and Value Proposition lectures. 100 points each (300 points total) Peer Evaluation of Class Participation Individual and Group Class attendance and participation is critical. This grade includes discussion on web and blog readings assigned. A key part of this grade component will be the Peer Evaluations of your group members. Please see group Evaluation Instrument to be distributed. 200 points Stanford E- Corner Video Series Individual assignment Students will be assigned to view two (approximate one hour duration) presentations by current thought leaders in entrepreneurship. A two page synopsis paper will be assigned on each video. Refined details in class. 50 points each (100 points total) Final Business Model Presentation and/or entry into a competitive contests Refined details in class. 400 points Grade Determination Grade Scale Significance A 94-100 Outstanding, Exceptional, Extraordinary BA 86-93 Thorough and Thoughtful Work B 80-85 Very Good, High Pass CB 75-79 Represents work that is a High Pass C 70-74 Satisfactory, Acceptable, Adequate DC 65-69 Barely Adequate D 60-64 Poor E 59 below Failing Class Quality Initiative: The instructor is committed to consistent improvements in the course and all comments are most welcome. Students are also urged to communicate with me anonymously in writing on any class matters or improvement ideas while the course is in session. Note: No audio/video recording of lectures will be allowed.
Class Segment MGMT 3340 Course Outline (Note: There will be intensive interactive Instructor - Team Time each and every Class segment) Topic, Focus, Deliverables 1 Define Course Goals, Business Model Canvas (BMC) Intro Get out of building exercise- customer discovery. Readings Blank Chap1, BMC BMG (Business Model Generation) 1-20 2 BMC Customer Segments/Value Propositions Intro to Value Proposition Canvas (VPC) Begin Using Osterwalder s Strategyzer Collaborative Software 3 Assign Teams Idea Generation BMC - Channels 4 Quiz 1 BMC Key Partners/Key Activities In-class review of team canvas 5 BMC Key Resources Lean Canvass (LC) compare contrast to BMC 6 BMC Cost Structure Revenue Streams What is an MVP? (Deep Dive Segment) Quiz 2 BMC Blank Chap 2-4, BMG 21-85 Blank in total Handouts BMG in total Lean Canvas Handouts 7 Value Proposition Canvas (deep dive segment) Empathy mapping Quiz 3 Handouts 8 Team Results Preliminary Presentations Osterwalder s methodology of mapping of sustainability in BMC 9 Team Time Blog TBA 10 Presentation Prep More than a Pitch talking with the BMC in a visual methodology Blog TBA Blank 205-285 11 Quiz #3 - In-class review of team canvas Handouts 12 Presentations 13 Presentations/competitions